Week in Review

Wow- what a week it has been! It started off okay. The boys were looking forward to school getting started and enjoying their last few days of summer vacation. I was intentionally easing up on their daily chores so that they could play outside as much as they wanted. Monday was a great day! We finished the enrollment process for their new school and on Tuesday, we went to check out the campus and buy school supplies. We had to hold off on room assignments until Wednesday because we were so late in getting registered. Then Wednesday morning came.
Wednesday started off with the kids getting up bright and early as usual. Jeff had to be at work at about 5 am, so he was gone by the time everyone else was up and around. The boys ate breakfast and went outside to play with their new neighborhood friends (we've only been here a month). At about 10:30 am, Eli runs screaming into the house-his right arm hanging in a very awkward fashion. I knew immediately that his arm was broken. I detailed that in another post. A very long day. All plans were immediately put on hold and Eli has to wait until next Thursday to start school. I was hoping we would only have one bad day, but why not Thursday, too?
David's first day of school. He is our oldest at the age of 9 1/2. He is one awesome kid- dependable, considerate, helpful- a very sweet personality. Also athletic- talented gymnast- loves baseball and basketball. He is not incredibly outgoing, a little on the shy side. He enters new situations with caution and tends to scope out the new territory and its inhabitants before throwing himself right in. I really like that about him. He's all about fairness and doing the right thing.
So- Jeff takes him to school, drops him off and it's looking like things are going well. The plan is for me to pick David up at 3:30 when school gets out. Meanwhile, I'm at home caring for a very sore Eli who can't stand for more than 5 minutes at a time because he is just so worn out from the previous days events. At about 3:10 I load up the kids in the rig (thats Alaskan for SUV) and drive to school and wait with the other masses of parents for their kids. Eli was doing ok, actually feeling pretty decent at this point. At 3:30, school is let out and now masses of children are coming out of the building. The kids are tired of sitting, so I pull everyone out of the rig and go to look for David, because there was no way he could find us where we were parked. I couldn't find him. I knew I was in the right spot to pick him up, but he wasn't there. Soon, I realize that most of the kids are gone and that David must have ended up somewhere else. We head towards his building (Eli was being a little trooper in the hot sun) and when we get there, inform the secretary that I can't find David. At this point, his teacher walks in the door and she at that point realizes that David didn't say good bye to her like the rest of his class and thought that he had found me already. We head back to the pick up area, all the while scoping the campus for him. The secretary had sent out a message on all of the walkie talkies that David was missing. At the pick up area, he was nowhere to be found and at this point, the campus principal got involved, sending out more messages on the walkie talkies (people with walkie talkies were positioned all over campus). We head back to his building (Eli was almost to the point of exhaustion) and David had been missing now for more than 10 minutes. As we are walking back, his teacher decides to check in the after school care area as we go to search David's building. About 2 minutes later, we hear her yelling for us and she had David with her. What a relief. There is nothing worse than not knowing where your child is at! I wanted to cry, but held back the tears. He had misunderstood where he was to go and went to the wrong pick up area. The supervisor of that area had shuffled him into after school care when he was the last one there, misunderstanding where he was supposed to be. David didn't even know he had been lost! Other than that, he loves his new school, teacher and class! Now- that was supposed to be the end of the bad week. But why shouldn't Friday be bad, too?
I woke up with a headache (not my "usual" migraine kind, but it covered my entire head and throbbed- my migraines start at the base of my skull and work their way up) and also feeling nauseous. I told myself that if I just get up and get moving, that it will go away. I was wrong about that! Took Jeff to work, took David to school and by the time we got home, I was feeling so sick that I couldn't even stand up. My headache was better, but my stomach was not. I spent the day on the couch. Eli, bless his heart, was feeling much better and was just as helpful as he could be with one arm. He even offered to make lunch for the girls with one arm! He even started movies for them and prevented them from out the front door several times! I kept telling myself that I was getting better, but by about 2 o'clock, I had made a trip to the bathroom- the first of many. I did manage to get a shower taken and my hair fixed- but the smells of all my hair styling stuff made me sick again. It was time to go pick David up. I grabbed some plastic grocery bags, just in case I needed them in the car while waiting and of course, I did. David didn't get lost this time- his teacher handed him off to me! When we got back in the car, I was sick again! Went home for about 45 minutes and then had to get Jeff. More plastic bags, but I did feel as if I was getting better. Traffic getting to Cracker Barrel was awful and the motion made me sick! I have never thrown up while driving, but I guess there is a first for everything- even at the age of 34! So thankful for Wal-mart bags! Finally- I was no longer alone and had someone else to take care of the kids. We picked Jeff up and he dropped me off for some quiet rest while he took the kids out to eat. At about 9 pm, I felt better and cleaned a house that had been trashed by a 3 and 4 year old.
Today is Saturday. I feel better today, but somewhat worn out. Eli feels much better and is starting to get bored with having just one arm! David enjoyed his first few days at his new school in spite of getting lost and so far, today has held no drama. I'm gonna chill today!